Devotional – January 22, 2021

What an expression of love that is demonstrated by a Heavenly Father towards His children; in His wisdom He knew ahead of time that at times the human flesh ails, and good health is necessary for us to live with joy and fulfill our purpose. Amidst the reality of illnesses and diseases, our God has given us the Promise of Healing. It is through the ransom sacrifice of His Son Jesus that we have access to this blessed gift.

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but may have eternal life.

St. John 3:16

Jesus came to earth, lived a life of obedience, was crucified and took the stripes across His back for our infirmities. His death on the cross is our guarantee that when we have faith in God, believing that when we are ill, we will be made well again. Can I tell you another wonderful story? You know I like to share stories from one on my favourite books, The Power of the Praying Woman by Stormie Omartian. In chapter 2, Stormie recalled her experience: one night she became extremely sick in her abdominal area and for months she was in and out of the hospital seeing doctors and specialists but none of these people could find anything wrong with her, until a doctor came and told her he believes that her appendix has raptured.

This turned out to be right.  Her illness was not the result of something she ate, or by a bad habit she had, it just happened. Sometimes, despite our best efforts to maintain our health, we can sometimes become sick due to no fault of our own; it could be that we inherit diseases from our ancestors, we become injured in an accident, or we can be exposed to things we aren’t even aware of that cause harm. Yet, even with the exposure to these risks, our Heavenly Father has given us a promise that experience such maladies we can receive healing. He sent His Beloved Son, Jesus as our Healer. Isaiah proclaimed this promise many years before Christ was born: His healing touch is God’s promise to us.

But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed

Isaiah 53:5

I have had my own experience of God’s Healing power. About 20 years ago I received a diagnosis of having uterine fibroids which had grown very large and was causing great discomfort in my body. My doctor informed me that I needed to undergo surgery to rectify the situation, so I sought the Lord about what to do. The instruction I received was that surgery was the best way to receive healing.

In reading God’s Word, I was aware of the Promise of Healing, so I went through the surgery by faith. The medical team was surprised by how quickly the surgery was completed compared to other patients who had the same procedure. I was also able to get out of bed and move around on the second day after the procedure; according to the doctors, they had never witnessed this before. It was my miracle, and a testament of God’s faithfulness to His promise of healing for me.

I hope you are encouraged to know that your Heavenly Father cares about your health. In your own life, when you are faced with an illness, it is a good practice to pray as the first response to your discomfort. God truly cares about your health and desires for you to we well. Yet, He expects to be invited into the situation so He can help. The Gift of Healing is not automatic; it requires prayer and faith. May you have a faith so great that when you pray and believe it will be done for you.